Men’s Jimmy V Classic Presented by Corona Celebrates All Four Teams Advancing to NCAA Championship


The 2015 Men’s Jimmy V Classic Presented by Corona placed all four participants in the NCAA Championship field, led by No. 1 seed (South) Virginia. The Cavaliers are joined by West Virginia (No. 3, East), Maryland (No. 5, South) and UCONN (No 9, South).

The Jimmy V Classic Presented by Corona is one of nine worldwide early season men’s college basketball events owned and operated by ESPN Events, a division of ESPN. Twenty-nine of this season’s 56 participants across these events were selected to the 2016 NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Championship field.

The Charlotte, N.C., based group manages six multiple-team events consisting of the AdvoCare Invitational, Gildan Charleston Classic, Puerto Rico Tip-Off, DIRECTV Wooden Legacy, NIT Season Tip-Off and Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic. The multi-day, destination events staged from Charleston, S.C., San Juan, Puerto Rico, Orange County, Calif., Orlando, Brooklyn and Honolulu, respectively, are all bracket-format tournaments.

In addition to the multiple-team tournaments, ESPN Events also manages three neutral men’s basketball events including the Jimmy V Classic presented by Corona, Armed Forces Classic and State Farm Champions Classic.

Each 2015 event featured at least two participants who earned a selection to the NCAA Championship. As mentioned previously, the AdvoCare Invitational led the way with all eight participating teams selected to play in the postseason, including six in the NCAA Championship and two in the NIT. The entire fields from the Armed Forces Classic, State Farm Champions Classic and Jimmy V Classic presented by Corona were also selected.

All six ESPN Events multiple-team event 2015 champions earned NCAA bids: Virginia from the Gildan Charleston Classic (No. 1 seed, Midwest Region), Miami from the Puerto Rico Tip-Off (No. 3, South), Michigan State from the DIRECTV Wooden Legacy (No. 2, Midwest), Xavier from the AdvoCare Invitational (No. 2, East), Villanova from the NIT Season Tip-Off (No. 2, South) and Oklahoma from the Hawaiian Airlines Diamond Head Classic (No. 2, West).

The 2016 Men’s Jimmy V Classic Presented by Corona will feature two schools that advanced to the NCAA Championship: Duke and Purdue. Duke will match up with NIT invitee Florida while Purdue will square off with Arizona State. The event will be held on Dec. 6 at the Madison Square Garden in New York City.